Never Too Old to be in Love Reposted
by Tockie16
Summary: This is the re-posted version of the story. It has all six chapters in one. couldn't publish any other way...don't ask lol Hope you all really enjoy this and thankyou for being patient for the upload! Please R&R it will be very much appreciated!


**This is from series 2 of Wild at Heart when Gerald comes to Leopard's Den, takes an interest in Caroline, and tries to persuade her to come away with him. This is my own interpretation of the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Wild at Heart or any of the characters; I take no credit for either.**

**Never Too Old to be in Love**

**Chapter 1: Dup's Jealousy**

"Why him?" thought Anders, scowling at Gerald, who seemed completely unaware of Dup's obvious annoyance.

"What's so special about him? Why can't he just leave us all in peace? Why can't he just stop trying to take the woman I love away from me?!"

The questions swam through his brain again and again, never answered, never subsiding.

Anders had been trying so hard to suppress his feelings for Caroline ever since she first arrived at Leopard's Den, and now he had his never ending jealousy to contend with on top of it all.

He would never forget the first time he saw Caroline. She just stepped out of that taxi, turned to face him and the family, and revealed from under her shades, a pair of big beautiful blue eyes, deeper than the depths of the ocean. He was hooked instantly.

Everything about her seemed beautiful to him, her hair had soft strands of dazzling silver entwined with light blonde curls, which gave her a sort of hazy glow. Her gentle pink lips added to the charm of her heavenly smile that caused his legs to go weak at the knees. Her figure was elegant and slender, and she was exceedingly graceful when she walked; she was everything he had ever wanted.

Admittedly, Caroline and He were not the best of friends; in fact, they seemed to have rows almost everyday. It was never anything serious, it was almost flirtatious in a way, not that either of them noticed. They would sometimes even insult each other, the words "Pig-headed," and "Big oaf," were used frequently. But bizarrely this seemed to make Anders love her more. He kind of liked their rows because he liked the attention from her. He found her quite cute when she was angry, and her eyes would flash with anger which rendered them even more extraordinary, which was one of the reasons he did it so much.

But now, he hadn't had the chance to even speak to her ever since Gerald crashed down on Leopard's Den in his, "beaten up wreak" of a plane, as Anders called it. He hated Gerald because he did all the things he couldn't. He could make Caroline laugh, he could make her happy and forget her troubles, and he could talk to her in that smooth talking voice he had been regrettably blessed with.

Anders needed to get Caroline on her own. He needed to try to convince her not to go with Gerald. He had to put his feelings on the line.

-----

Caroline was alone on the veranda looking out onto the South African landscape that she would soon be leaving behind. She was sad to be leaving her daughter and grandchildren but she felt that she had no choice. She didn't belong in the bush; she was far too accustomed to her life in England, with all her friends and her far more modern home. There was nothing for her here. She half turned to go inside when she saw Anders quickly approaching her from the descending steps, his face a little flustered.

"Oh, what does he want?" she thought, feeling slightly irritated. Anders stood next to her, settled himself, waited a few moments and then began.

"Caroline…what on earth do you see in this guy? I mean, come on, he's not exactly trustworthy is he?" he said as he leant against the wooden rail, trying to seem casual.

Caroline rolled her eyes and mirrored his position. "Oh for goodness sake Anders what business is it of yours? I am very fond of Gerald, and I plan to spend a lot of time with him. Do I need to explain any more than that?" Anders winced at the thought of them together, Caroline continued.

"I'll tell you what I see in him, he's charming, sophisticated, good looking…." Anders let out a puff of mirthless laughter, the anger and jealously building up inside of him already.

"I don't trust him Caroline; he's only taken a fancy to you because your so beauti…." Anders swallowed; he had almost admitted that he thought she was beautiful.

Caroline stared at him and frowned. "Was he about to say 'beautiful'?" she wondered.

"What did you say?" she queried, feeling almost certain that she must have heard him wrong.

"Nothing" he lied, "All I was saying is that he doesn't really care for you, and all those things he's been telling you…the big house on the cape, his millions… It's all one massive lie." He was getting a bit desperate at this point, and he was raising his voice.

Caroline hit him gently on his shoulder, the contact made him catch his breath.

"Keep your voice down! Anyway how are you so sure that he's lying?" Caroline was becoming angry now.

"You know what I think Anders?" she asked frustrated.

"What?" he gently replied, trying to hide his own anger.

"I think you are so blinded by your own dislike and jealousy of him, that you won't even give yourself a chance to get to know him!" she hissed.

Anders jerked his head and looked her straight in the eyes. Oh my God she knew. This time he didn't want to see her angry, or to see the way her anger made her eyes look, it was serious now.

He tried to cover up the truth. He forced a fake laugh and said,

"_Me_? Jealous of _Gerald_? Ha! That's a good one! Why would I be jealous of a liar? Of a man who has nothing, but his so called charm, and who probably has not even a penny to his name?" He was raising his voice again; this was not going as he had planned.

"Stop saying he's a liar!" she yelled, "I don't know _why _you are jealous Anders DuPlessis, but I know for a fact that you are!" She pointed her finger at him, her eyes blazing.

"So tell me Anders. Go on; tell me why you are so jealous of him. Tell me what is so wrong for me to be with him, because I just can't listen to this again and again. Go on. Tell ME!" she demanded clenching her fists.

Anders couldn't take it anymore; he turned his back on Caroline. All the while he was having an on going battle in his head, "Don't say it… please don't say it…it'll just make it worse…don't say it!"

Anders spun back round grabbed Caroline's shoulders and looked her straight in the eyes. "It's because I love you!" he said, his heart pounding against his chest, his breathing heavy. And with that he turned and left, leaving Caroline with a look of complete shock and a hint of admiration on her face.

"All right…I said it" Anders said to himself, "But maybe it will just stop her leaving, nothing more, she wouldn't want us to be more than friends anyway." he sighed.

"Man I need a drink!"

Gerald left the next day…

**This is also from series 2 of Wild at Heart. This is when Caroline starts to realise that she has feelings for DuPlessis, but she doesn't want to admit what she feels.**

**Chapter 2: Ridiculous Feelings**

It had been two weeks since Gerald had left, and Caroline wasn't affected by this in the slightest. In fact, she had found herself, strangely, thinking about Anders instead.

Every time she realised that she was almost fantasising about him, she would immediately snap out of it and say, "What on earth is wrong with me?"

In all honesty she didn't know what was wrong with her. Lately she had been noticing some quite charming things about him, things that she would have previously regarded as annoying. Such as his outlandish, loud, and almost rebellious character. His tendency to speak his mind without thinking about consequence.

She had also noticed more subtle aspects.

She had never before realised how striking his coral blue eyes were, or the way his cheeks dimpled when he flashed his boyish and mischievous grin, how charming his accent was, how lovely he was with Evan and Olivia, and how supportive he was of the family even though they weren't related to him.

She had even found herself liking how scruffy he was, thinking that it was quite adorable and that it suited him.

She would never admit her thoughts to anyone however, especially not to him. She was too proud, and actually too afraid to let someone in again. After what happened with her ex-husband, she vowed never to open her heart to anyone ever again.

But Anders was so different compared to all the other men she had been with.

With him, what you saw was what you got; there was nothing untruthful or false about him. He wasn't afraid to be himself, and he was comfortable in his own skin.

He wasn't by any means perfect, but then he didn't aspire to be. He never took himself seriously.

The only people he wanted to please were the people he cared about. He was one of those people who you needed to take the trouble to know, and once you did, you couldn't help but really like and trust him.

----------

Caroline was still musing over all this as she absent mindedly strolled to the door that led out to the veranda. And who should she literally bump into but none other than the man himself. "Oof!"

"Anders!" she exclaimed, surprised and embarrassed. He had no idea what she had been thinking about, but Caroline was wary of him somehow reading her thoughts.

"Oh, h-hi Caroline," he stuttered, seemingly just as startled. He couldn't help but smile at her slight blush that he himself had caused.

"I was just…um…just about to get the rugby ball for Evan and me" he explained. He looked up at her when she didn't answer.

"Caroline?" she suddenly realised that she was staring at him and had barely registered what he had said. "Oh, yes, sorry. I'll just go outside" She was blushing very noticeably now.

They tried to side step each other but they moved together, and again, and again. Then Anders stopped, smiled widely, lifted her up with his hands and switched their positions. "There we are," he laughed, and retreated inside to complete his search for the rugby ball.

Caroline, a little bewildered and dizzy from what had just happened, went to sit down with a thud, and tried not to think about him, and how she had been quite impressed with his strength …"To be able to just lift me like that."

She scolded herself, "Stop it now Caroline, this is just…Ridiculous."

But _this_ was only the beginning…

**This is from series 3 when Caroline's sister Judith comes to visit during the drought. It also includes the fundraiser for the animal hospital and the auctioning of Dup. **

**Chapter 3: Caroline's Jealousy**

"Stop this Caroline; she only paid him a compliment. It doesn't mean anything." Caroline told herself.

Her sister Judith had come to visit her at Leopard's Den, annoyingly during a drought. She loved her sister, but she had the most incredible gift of turning up at the worst possible time.

Caroline hadn't seen any reason why Judith shouldn't come to the fundraiser for the Animal Hospital. That was until Judith started to make eyes at Anders. _Her _Anders. Caroline didn't know why, but she seemed to see him as being hers, and she hadn't realised this until Judith said…_that_. And_ that_ was what started it all.

"Anders! Well don't you just look adorable!" exclaimed Judith as Dup appeared from behind the main tent, dressed in a smart black suit with a crisp white shirt, and a slightly lopsided red bow-tie

"Oh…Thank you" replied Anders with a boyish smile directed at Judith. This made Caroline feel just a little jealous, as she was used to him only blessing her with that smile.

She couldn't stand to hear anymore and went to get herself a drink from inside the main tent. She tried to convince herself that, that was just Judith's way of speaking to men. She was an extremely forward and flirtatious character, which was why she had four divorces under her belt.

Caroline tried to engross herself in a conversation with a local but she frequently found herself looking over at Judith and Anders, especially when she heard them both laughing together. This time when Caroline looked over, to her horror, she saw that Judith actually had an arm around Anders' neck, and Anders had stopped laughing completely.

Luckily, they were split apart by a dog that had escaped the petting zoo. Caroline smiled widely at this, and a small chuckle escaped her.

Later, the auction started.

----------

There were only a few men who had agreed to do this, one of which was Cedric Fatani. Caroline knew she should feel sorry for him, but when he only went for fifteen Rand, to his own mother, she couldn't help but laugh.

The next person to be auctioned off was Anders himself. She thought he was brave to do it because it could be a very embarrassing experience, as was shown by poor Fatani. She noticed the half cheeky, half nervous look in his coral blues and laughed to herself. "Bless him," she thought.

Caroline had, had no intention of bidding for anyone, not even Anders, until Judith suddenly yelled, "Seventy Rand!" Caroline jerked her head towards her sister, very shocked, and yet it was not wholly unexpected coming from her.

"Oh no Judith, you're not having him. He's mine, not yours," Caroline scolded her sister silently. Before she even realised what she was getting herself into, she found herself shouting out, "One hundred Rand!" She blushed, what was she doing?

"Did I just do that?" she thought, quite taken aback.

Anders looked very surprised at this turn of events, but secretly he was thoroughly enjoying it. The war continued:

"One hundred and fifty," Judith shouted

"Two Hundred," said Caroline in retaliation.

"Three!"

"Four!" Caroline was determined for her sister not to steal Anders away. "She is not going to hurt him, not like all the others!" she thought vehemently. But Judith seemed equally as determined.

"Five!"

"SIX!"

Everyone could feel the tension between them. So much so that some had retreated a step or two, just in case things got ugly. Even Anders started to feel uncomfortable in this situation, even if he had loved the idea of two beautiful women fighting over him.

Unfortunately, Judith came out victorious, bidding a startling one thousand two hundred Rand. Caroline would have continued if it wasn't for her common sense, reminding her that she was not there to lose money on a fight over a man, but to gain it for the essential Animal Hospital.

When Anders strolled off the stage, and into Judith's outstretched arms, Caroline realised that she had never thought so horribly about her sister before. The sight of it really hurt Caroline but she was determined not to show it.

That night she went to bed. After laying there for a while, unable to get that torturing image out of her head, warm tears started to silently and slowly flow down her cheeks until she finally fell asleep.

------

The next morning Caroline was sitting down at the kitchen table reading the local newspaper. She was finding it increasingly uninteresting, as she was far more concerned about the fact that Anders seemed uncommonly happy and cheerful today. He was humming away to himself in a very care free manner. "This must be to do with Judith" thought Caroline regrettably.

Just as she was thinking this Judith herself entered the kitchen, and made her way over to Anders, who had just made her and himself a cup of tea.

"Morning handsome!" giggled Judith, as she accepted the tea and thanked him with a kiss on the cheek, much to Caroline's annoyance.

"Pah! Hardly! Morning beautiful," Anders replied, again grinning boyishly at Judith, and returning the kiss.

"You are handsome!" declared Judith, "Caroline, tell Anders he_ is_ handsome!" she demanded, flashing a mischievous smile at Dup.

Caroline went red. "If only you knew what I truly thought and felt," she muttered under her breath from behind the newspaper. She pretended not to really care, and as casually and uninterestedly as possible, she lowered the paper and obliged,

"Anders, you _are _handsome. There, was that sufficient enough for you Judith?"

-------

Anders blushed at this. He was still in love with Caroline, and to hear her say that made him tingle all over. He did have feelings for Judith, but they were not nearly as strong or as deep as his feelings for Caroline; he did not_ love _Judith.

He knew that it would never happen between Caroline and him, so he opted for Judith who _did_ want to be with him. He thought that, in time, being with Judith would drive all thought of Caroline out of his head, and that he would be able to move on. But at the moment he wasn't so sure.

He tried to stop thinking about her when he was with Judith, he really did, but she kept muscling her way into his heart and mind every time he let his guard down. It was almost maddening. He almost felt as if he was cheating on her, even though they were no more than just good friends.

Caroline had never seized to amaze and surprise him, and in all honesty he didn't want her to stop surprising him. He loved her to no end.

It was hopeless from the very beginning, he knew that. He also knew that if he kept waiting for Caroline to end his agony of unrequited love, it would be far too late for him to try and find love somewhere else. His decision didn't make things easier, but in the long term he thought that this was the right thing to do.

If only Anders knew what was in store for him just two weeks later…

**Set in Series 3 of Wild at Heart. My own made-up story **

**Chapter 4: Confessions **

Anders was sitting on top of the Bushman cave, drinking in his surroundings, breathing Africa for what seemed more than the billionth time. It was where he came to think, to be alone and to feel completely at ease, to just…be, and forget his troubles. It was where he had his 'eureka' moments, the moments when he knew exactly what to do in a terrible situation.

He needed one of those moments now.

His feelings for Caroline weren't subsiding. In fact, they were becoming ever more fervent, and he had suspicions that Judith knew about it.

He had never been in a situation like this before, well, at least not one where _he_ was the one having to choose between the two people he had feelings for. Now he knew how his late wife Elizabeth had felt when she had to choose between him and her fiancé at the time.

Anders knew that Judith was the logical choice, as Caroline did not feel for him as he felt for her. But he just couldn't keep kidding himself that he would forget her and stop loving her, just because he was with Judith now.

He was really happy when he was with Judith, but he still had that niggling thought in the back of his mind, telling him that he would only ever be truly happy if he was with Caroline. He tried to ignore it but every time he did, the voice would become louder and louder, drowning all other thought out.

That's when he knew he had to come away from it all, and especially away from Caroline, before his heart exploded and he said something he'd regret.

He knew that if Caroline asked, he would give his heart to her willingly, and without question.

----------

Later that day, after Caroline had gone over it again and again in her mind, she had come to the conclusion that if she didn't say anything, she would lose Anders forever, and she wasn't prepared to let that happen.

Earlier she had overheard Judith saying to Sarah that they were planning to get married soon. That had sent alarms going off in Caroline's brain. She couldn't let Anders go without confessing her feelings for him.

For the first time in so many years, Caroline had learnt to love again, and she knew that she would have to open her heart to him, to risk everything, if she was ever going to stand a chance in love ever again. She knew that there was every chance of getting her heart broken, but she also knew that, that was the risk she was going to have to take.

It was her turn to put her feelings on the line. Just like Anders had done last year, when he admitted that he loved her, so that she wouldn't leave with Gerald.

She was hoping that Anders did still love her, but she was determined not to get her hopes up, in order to make the blow less painful… if that was possible.

She would tell him tonight.

----------

Caroline was out in the garden, next to the fountain, reciting what she would say to Anders. How she would begin, and how she would go about telling him how she felt. She was pacing, and was completely lost in her own thoughts when she saw Anders walking towards her, just returning from the Bushman cave. He saw her and grinned that boyish grin at her. She sheepishly smiled back, and began.

"Anders…There's…umm…There's something I need to talk to you about." Her eyes were wide and pleading. This startled Anders a little, but he just smiled and said,

"Ok, but can it wait just two seconds? I need to go and change" He gestured to his dust covered clothes as he let out a puff of laughter.

Caroline laughed herself and nodded, "Of course. I'll be here when you're ready." "Ok, thanks." and with that he started up towards the house.

--------

Anders wondered what it was Caroline wanted to talk to him about. Maybe she had heard about their marriage plans, and wanted to tell him to be always faithful to Judith, her being the protective sister and all.

Anders changed quickly into a pair of faded jeans, donned a white T-shirt and pulled a deep blue jumper over his head. It was his favourite jumper…because Caroline had said she liked it, as she thought it brought out his eyes really nicely. Finally, he placed his tatted hat on his head, grabbed a torch just in case, and made his way out to the fountain where Caroline stood waiting in the shimmering moonlight.

She looked…in a word…Beautiful.

Her striking deep blue eyes suddenly fixed on his, rendering him breathless. What was she doing to him? She had such power over him that it almost frightened him.

"So? What was it you wanted to talk to me about?" he queried, thinking that he knew the answer.

"Well, I…" she faltered, and dropped her gaze for a second. Then she took a deep breath and continued. She could do this. She could open her heart again. For him.

"I just wanted to ask you…are you sure you know what you're doing? With Judith?"

Anders had expected this. "You've heard about our marriage plans then?" he smiled nervously, and put his free hand into his pocket.

"Yes, I overheard her talking about it to Sarah. I don't know if she's told anyone else...So, are you?" She prepared herself for the worst.

"Sure about what I'm doing?" He sighed; he had to tell her the truth. He couldn't lie to anyone, least of all her. "To be honest Caroline I'm not a hundred percent sure." He leaned against the fountain for support.

Caroline looked up at him, almost relieved, and took the plunge, "I don't want you to marry her, Anders."

Anders was a little taken aback with this, but he answered for her. "Because you don't think I'd make a good husband for her, or…?"

Caroline laughed, "No! Because I don't think she'd make a good wife!" Anders was wide eyed in shock. She was concerned about him, not Judith.

"Wait, what?" he asked bewildered.

Caroline explained, "I love my sister, don't get me wrong. But I just don't want her to hurt you, like all the other men she has married or been with." She sighed.

"She uses men, and ends up breaking their hearts, and I can't bear the thought of that happening to you." Her voice was becoming laced with emotion. But she shook it off and stood taller, determined to see this through.

"Through her selfish actions I have lost countless friends, and even boyfriends, just because they have been hurt by her. And I'm the one who actually gets hurt, maybe more than any of them. Because after she has had what she wants, she eventually gets bored with them, and afterwards they can't even look at me because either, I hadn't warned them enough, or because they can't bear to be around anyone who is associated with her." Caroline fought hard to keep back her tears.

Anders was becoming oddly impatient now; he pushed himself off of the fountain and stood firmly on the ground. So she wouldn't love him back, and now she was taking away the last chance he had for love.

Yes, perhaps her intentions were to protect him, and he loved her for it, if that was indeed the case. But he had thought that he would never be in love again after the death of Elizabeth, until Caroline came and proved him wrong.

But she didn't love him back…and now he had Judith, and Caroline was trying to split them up. He couldn't take it anymore. He just snapped.

"What, so I'm not allowed to be with her, or to be in love, just because you don't want me to?!" he shouted.

Caroline frowned; she wasn't expecting him to lose his temper over this.

"I didn't mean it like that at all, and you know it!" She was obviously offended, and she was angry at him for presuming that.

Anders walked over to her so that they stood face to face.

"Oh, come off it Caroline. Admit it; you never wanted me to be with Judith in the first place, and now you're saying all this just because you don't want her to steal your friend away. I can't believe that this is over some stupid things she did when you were kids! Stealing your boyfriends, or whatever!" he snapped.

Caroline was really angry now, "That's got nothing to do with it! I was just saying that so you knew what she could be like. Yes I admit I don't want you to be with her, but it's for different reasons than you think!" she shouted back.

Anders was fuming, but he tried to calm himself down. He composed himself, sat against the edge of the fountain, and gently said,

"What are the reasons then?" He didn't mean it to come across as vehement, but he was still so angry that it came out more forcefully than he had intended.

Tears had started to come out of Caroline's eyes. This was it. This was the moment to fully open her heart. She said it slowly, "It's because I love you!"

She had a flash back to when Anders had said those very words to her, and she realised she should have said it so much earlier than this.

"I've been in love with you ever since you told me that you loved me last year. But I was too afraid to go any further than just good friends with you. Because the last time I opened my heart and let myself love someone, I got my heart broken, because the man I loved cheated on me repeatedly. I asked him to stop, but he couldn't. And ever since I had vowed to never let my guard down, for any man, ever again…Until I met you."

Anders couldn't believe what he was hearing. She loved him.

"Oh my God…she loves me" he thought, his heart overflowing with love for her, all anger inside of him dissolved completely. He was unable to speak, to think, to comprehend what she had just confessed to him.

Caroline walked over to him and pressed a soft hand to his rugged cheek. His heart skipped a couple of beats, and then thrashed wildly in his chest. She was eye level with him now.

"You're so different Anders; you're honest, kind, sweet, unbelievably supportive, and you have a heart of pure gold. You aren't afraid to be yourself, or to speak your mind. There's no falseness about you. What you see is what you get. And I…I love everything about you," she said with complete adoration towards him; a loving smile broke across her radiant face.

"I love you too" he said breathlessly. He placed his larger, rougher hand over her smaller and softer one.

"I've always loved you. I admit I had feelings for Judith…but the main reason why I was with her was because I thought you and I would never happen. And I thought that if I was with her…then I might be able to get you out of my head, and move on. But I was wrong. I'm hooked on you Caroline, and I know for a fact that I will always love you…till the day I die. And that I'll never truly love, or ever be truly happy, with anyone else… but you."

He felt like a great weight had been lifted off his chest. All the times he had wanted to say that, and couldn't, just added to the painful weight of it. But now it was all out in the open. There was no going back for either of them.

Caroline removed her hand from his cheek, and slipped her arms around his neck. Laughing with complete happiness; finally knowing the truth of his feelings for her.

Anders placed his forehead gently against hers, and dropped the torch he was holding. Wrapping his arms around her small waist, he laughed with her.

She was his 'eureka' moment. He knew exactly what to do. He knew that it would be difficult to explain to poor Judith why he couldn't be with her anymore. But he didn't want to think about that now. All he wanted was to bask in the warm glow of this moment with Caroline.

Filled with affection, Caroline sneaked a light kiss on his mouth, and when she drew away, she laughed heartedly at the effect that she had produced. Anders' face was in a complete daze, with the most subtle hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth, and for a second he thought he might swoon.

He snapped out of it, however still leaving that slightly dazed, but loving look imprinted on his features. He released his breath, which he hadn't realised that he had been holding, with a single word.

"Wow!"

Caroline giggled. But it was short lived, when she suddenly caught a glimpse of Judith marching towards them from the house, her face furious. Anders followed Caroline's gaze, and a look of horror swept over his eyes.

They quickly released each other, as if they had been burnt, and terrible guilt flooded their features.

Judith reached them and stood staring at them, her arms folded, and her eyes wild with anger, just waiting…

**Chapter 5: Judith Revealed**

Anders knew Judith was waiting for one of them to say something, so he took it upon himself to start, "Judith…I…um…I can explain." Judith tilted her head towards him, and raised her eyebrows, still waiting.

Anders let out a puff of nervous laughter and said, "You know what…I can't explain." He looked down at his feet not able to meet her eyes, unless they burned through him. Caroline was speechless; she had no idea what to do.

Judith carried on staring at them with that death stare she had adopted over the years, which was said to bring the toughest of men to their knees. She looked from Caroline, to Anders, and back again, never blinking.

Suddenly, her features instantly softened and she let out a laugh of pure delight and amusement. "I'm sorry I can't keep it up anymore! Your faces are just priceless! Haha!"

Anders and Caroline looked at each other, completely confused, and then back at Judith who had tears of mirth streaming down her cheeks, giving her an 'Alice Cooper' look.

"Gosh, took you two long enough didn't it! I was starting to worry you would never say anything Caroline, and that you would have actually gone through with the wedding!" she said pointing at Anders.

Caroline, still utterly puzzled, asked, "Wait a minute. Are you saying that you planned all this?"

Judith, still giggling, answered, "Of course I did! It's unbelievably obvious that you two love each other." She produced a clean tissue out of her skirt pocket and dabbed her eyes with it, regaining control over her laughter.

"And I know how hard it is for you to admit you love someone Caroline," she said with a look of pure compassion.

"I went through all this to make you realise how much you love Anders, and to help you to let your guard down again. To be the open hearted, loving and caring girl you used to be, before that horrid ex-husband of yours sashayed into the clearing," said Judith with an edge of contempt in her voice on the latter.

"Oh, everyone else was in on this by the way, so don't feel compelled to explain all this again," she said matter of factly, placing the tissue back in her pocket.

At this Caroline and Anders just looked at each other and laughed with relief. Judith had been setting them up for this moment the entire time, and they were eternally grateful to her.

Caroline's guilt had washed away completely, she felt, actually, quite rebellious and defiantly declared, "So none of you mind if I do this then?"

And with that she flung her arms around Anders' neck, and snogged him senseless, making him fall back a couple of steps; having to hold onto his hat. His shock wore off, and he kissed her back, both giddy with utter joy, neither holding anything back.

Suddenly, there was an eruption of claps, cheers, laughter, and wolf whistles, descending from the veranda. Both broke apart and looked towards the source of the commotion, and saw Danny and Sarah, hands entwined, laughing, Evan and Olivia, clapping and wolf whistling, and Max and Rosie, arms around each other's waist, cheering.

Danny broke apart from Sarah and made his way down towards them, followed shortly by the rest of the family. "Bout time you two got together," he stated with a cheeky smile of approval.

Anders answered, "Yeah well, you and I are going to have a little chat Trevanion, about you all being in on it," he pointed in turn to all of them with a look of mock seriousness, and all let out a laugh which was a mixture of relief and happiness…

**Well my friends this is the last part of my first ever fan fiction! Thank you so much for taking the time to read it! I really hope you enjoyed it as much as I have! All the best! Tockie16 :) **

**Chapter 6: Finale**

Later that night they all sat around the table, looking out to the garden dotted with zebras, giraffes, elephants and wildebeest. The blood-red blazing sun was settling into the mystical pink bed of puffy cloud beneath, the most beautiful African sunset Dup had ever seen.

Anders was sitting on the cushioned and rustic, wooden bench with Caroline sitting sideways on his lap. Her head leaning back on his shoulder, and his arms circling her waist. All was peaceful.

Anders caught Danny's eye and both men smiled. The younger man's was a smile of great approval, the older man's was one of pure happiness.

-------

As the night was drawing to a close, all went to get ready for bed.

After a few hours, Anders was lying in his bed still awake, musing over all that had happened in the past few weeks. He smiled broadly at the memories of Caroline confessing her feelings for him, and kissing him fully for the first time.

As he was musing, he heard his door open and close with a click. He looked up to see who had entered, but before he knew who it was, they had already slipped into the bed next to him…Caroline.

"Hello handsome," she whispered with a cheeky grin etched on her face, looking up at him.

"Hello beautiful," he replied, an even wider smile broke across his face. Caroline turned so that her back faced him, and brought his arm around her waist; he let out a deep and quiet chuckle, and lightly kissed her on her temple.

"Did you really mean it? When Judith asked you to tell me, I was handsome?" he queried with a mischievous and boyish glint in his coral blue eyes.

Caroline leaned back on the pillow to face him, "Of course I meant it. I only said it in that way to give Judith the impression I didn't care that you two were together," she explained.

"I thought I had feelings for her…But I realise now that they were completely made up… I wanted to believe that I did, because I was trying so hard to move on," he realised, as he propped himself up on his elbow to look her in the eyes.

"It was always you Caroline…No one else could make me feel the way you do…I love you, and that in itself is a miracle. Because I never thought I would ever love anyone ever again after Elizabeth, least of all at this stage in my life," he professed.

Caroline smiled adoringly; tears of happiness began to fall from her deep, dark eyes.

She reached up, and pulled him to her to kiss him gently.

"I love you too…and I never thought that this would happen for me either." she replied, incandescently happy, and glad to be proven wrong. Anders smiled affectionately back at her, and lovingly stated,

"I guess you're never too old to be in love."

That night, they fell asleep in each other's arms, and every night since…

**END!**

**Please R&R! **


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